Thursday, July 8, 2010

Scow trip, July 3, 2010.

We left McKenzie Crossing this morning, making 12 more kilometers and managed to avoid getting stuck on submerged rocks. McKenzie Crossing is where secondary highway 590 crosses the Red Deer River. We floated down to Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park and then Philip Currie and I guided the scow onto the exact spot where Barnum Brown had his scow anchored in 1910. We had to dodge a few rocks as we landed and then of all things- a submerged shopping cart! After landing we set up a canvas tent on the site of Brown's camp in 1910, then Patty and I donned period clothes for some historical re-enactment pictures- I will post some of them later. We had a number of visitors including the scows carpenter Perry and his wife Alice. The pictures and video clip here were taken on the exact spot of Barnum Browns scow camp in 1910- an idyllic scene and satisfying after all the work to get here. We were serenaded by Coyotes (Canis latrans) tonight and then in the early hours an obviously displeased beaver (Castor canadensis) sharply slapped his/her tail into the water close to the scow waking us.